India News Update Highlights:Defence Minister Rajnath Singh discusses bilateral, security issues with counterpart Austin

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Indian Navy officials informed that today, at approximately 5:00 p.m., a single Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA)/Searcher crashed about a mile short of the runway at INS Garuda, Kochi, while on a regular training sortie. There have been no reports of property damage or injuries. Quickly reacting, a specialised team was sent to the location to make sure the RPA crash was safely recovered. An investigation into the occurrence has been mandated:

President of the Republic of Bulgaria, Rumen Radev thanked PM Narendra Modi for saving their citizens who were on the hijacked Bulgarian ship. His tweet stated, "My sincere gratitude to PM Narendra Modi for the brave action of 🇮🇳Navy rescuing the hijacked Bulgarian ship “Ruen” and its crew, including 7 Bulgarian citizens.

On Monday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh spoke with US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin over the phone. During their conversation, the two presidents touched on a variety of bilateral, regional, and defence cooperation matters. Meanwhile, Austin praised the Indian Navy's significant contribution in anti-piracy operations in the Indian Ocean Region.India and the United States are preparing for 'Tiger Triumph 2024', a bilateral, tri-service exercise that began on Monday and will last until March 31.

The first Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) between India and Cabo Verde took place today in Praia, Cabo Verde, and were co-chaired by Sevala Naik Mude, Additional Secretary (Central & West Africa), Ministry of External Affairs from India, and Dr. Miryan Djamila Sena Vieira, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation from Cabo Verde.

CDS Anil Chauhan also continued saying that, "During peacetime, the armed forces must defend the credibility of our claims to these contested frontiers. This will necessitate very careful management of the PLA at all friction points, calibrated firmness, and both parties operating within the parameters of agreed-upon rules of engagement. As with every disputed border, the adversary will attempt to produce new facts or markers, toponomy or cartographic aggressions, or a new narrative. This will need to be addressed collaboratively by all of us at all levels."

At the Defence Strategic Dialogue on the "Rise of China and its consequences for the world," CDS Anil Chauhan said, "The fourth challenge we face today is unsettled borders...we inherited disputed borders. The occupation of Tibet by China made them a new neighbour and the partition of India created a new nation that thrived on hostility and hatred towards us. Today, India has disputed borders with both our neighbours...The unsettled borders with China and the rise of China will remain the most formidable challenge that India and Indian armed forces will face in the foreseeable future.

Gangster Sukhwinder Rana, who is accused of killing Punjab Police Constable Amritpal Singh, was killed in an encounter with police in Hoshiarpur, Punjab.

West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose visited Metiabruz in South Kolkata today, where a 5-storey under-construction building collapsed, killing eight people. The Governor also went to the hospital to meet the injured.

The Consulate General of India in New York posted on X stating, "Deeply saddened to learn about the unfortunate demise of Abhijeeth Paruchuru, an Indian student in Boston. His parents, based in Connecticut, are in direct touch with detectives. Initial investigations rule out foul play."

News LIVE Updates: PM Modi pays respect to 1998 Coimbatore serial bomb blast victims
In Coimbatore, Prime Minister Narendra Modi pays respect to the victims of the 1998 Coimbatore serial bomb blast. The explosion took the lives of 58 persons. The 1998 Bombings were a series of planned strikes that rattled Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, on February 14, 1998. It was a tragic occurrence that left a lasting impression on the city.

A total of 12 explosives went off in 11 different locations within a 12-kilometer radius. This resulted in 58 deaths and almost 200 injuries. The devices were positioned in a variety of locations, including the Coimbatore Junction railway station, a market area near a BJP leader's election rally, and commercial buildings.

Satyendar Jain, AAP leader, surrendered to Tihar Jail hours after the Supreme Court dismisses his regular bail request in a money laundering case, said Officials.

Ahmedabad Crime Branch arrested two more accused in the Gujarat University hostel incident. According to the authorities, a group of people assaulted students from several foreign countries on Saturday night at the Gujarat University dormitory for offering namaz near the facility's building. Two students, one from Sri Lanka and the other from Tajikistan, were hospitalised following the incident, which occurred in the A-block hostel, police said.

IOL Chemicals completed the GMP audit of 10 APIs units in Punjab by the Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency (ANVISA) without any observations. The inspection was conducted between March 11 and 15.

The IRCTC has approved a total project cost of Rs. 187.23 crores for the procurement of ICT infrastructure, including hardware, software, networking, and security systems and to establish a Disaster Recovery Site (DR Site) for the NGeT System at the PRS Data Centre in Secunderabad for a period of 5-year.

The ED, Delhi Zonal Office has temporarily attached immovable properties in the form of land/farmhouse(s) located in an affluent area of Delhi valued Rs. 16.57 crore belonging to Shravan Gupta, an accused in the Agusta Westland VVIP Chopper Scam.

According to sources, the West Bengal administration appointed Vivek Sahay as the state's new DGP on Monday, following instructions from the Election Commission of India (ECI). The appointment came just hours after Rajeev Kumar was sacked as director general of police. Sahay, an IPS officer from the 1988 batch, served as the Director General and Commandant General (Home Guard). Kumar, who was appointed as the state DGP in December, was transferred to the Information and Technology department, a "non-election" post, as an interim arrangement, according to sources.

According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation, "famine is imminent" in northern Gaza, where an estimated 70% of the population is facing catastrophic hunger. On Monday, the World Food Programme presented the most recent findings from its Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, or IPC, an international process for evaluating the extent of hunger crises. It claims that almost everyone in Gaza is struggling to find enough food and that over 210,000 people in northern Gaza are in Phase 5, the most severe, which denotes catastrophic starvation.

"We thank IOA for giving us full fledged control of the Federation. We will soon organise National camp and if wrestlers want to train abroad, we will facilitate that as well. I am sure that it is end of the struggle for us" WFI President Sanjay Singh said to PTI over the IOA's decision to dissolve the ad hoc committee.

While congratulating Russian President Vladimir Putin on his re-election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted on X saying, "Warm congratulations to H.E. Mr. Vladimir Putin on his re-election as the President of the Russian Federation. Look forward to working together to further strengthen the time-tested Special & Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia in the years to come."

In accordance with the established collaboration between India and the United States, Tiger Triumph-24, a bilateral tri-service Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) Exercise, is scheduled on the Eastern Seaboard from March 18 to March 31, 24. The drill would involve Indian Navy ships with integral helicopters and landing craft, Indian Navy planes, Indian Army men and vehicles, Indian Air Force aircraft and helicopters, and the Rapid Action Medical Team (RAMT), stated the Indian Navy.

While speaking on the current issue of the water crisis in Bengaluru, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said, "I have told our officers to use water tankers to provide water. We have 142 control rooms. I have told them to increase it - to identify where is the issue, to supply water, and to respond immediately to the complaint. For vehicle cleaning and other issues, please don't use drinking water, use recycled water."

The Dharavi Redevelopment Project survey began on Monday in Kamla Raman Nagar, Maharashtra. According to SVR Srinivas, CEO of the Dharavi Redevelopment Project, the project is essential, and the survey has begun today. One of the Kamla Raman Nagar villagers stated that the reconstruction project will provide the residents with larger rooms and nicer residences and that they are quite happy.

Ministry of Home Affairs officials stated that the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Tribunal, chaired by Justice Neena Bansal Krishna of the High Court of Delhi, is established by the Central Government to determine whether there is sufficient cause to declare the Muslim Conference Jammu and Kashmir (Bhat faction) (MCJK-B) and Muslim Conference Jammu and Kashmir (Sumji faction) (MCJK-S) to be an unlawful association.

The CBI dismissed AAP leader Manish Sisodia's release and warned that certain high-profile people could be detained.The court has scheduled a hearing by ED on Friday. The investigation is ongoing, and the accused may obstruct it, according to the CBI.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal ignored an Enforcement Directorate summons in a money laundering case involving suspected anomalies in the Delhi Jal Board on Monday, with the Aam Aadmi Party calling the letter "illegal".

The AAP accused the BJP government at the Centre of "using" the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to target Kejriwal and prevent him from campaigning for the Lok Sabha elections.

Pakistani military aircraft launched airstrikes in the Barmal district of Paktika province and the Afghan Dubai area of Sepera district in Khost province. Tragically, these strikes targeted civilian residences, killing six people and destroying property, according to a statement from Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesperson in Afghanistan.

Ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, the Election Commission on March 18 ordered the removal of bureaucrats and officials from various parts Indi, including West Bengal's Director General of Police Rajiv Kumar and Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation Commissioner Iqbal Chahal.

The Indian Army has raised the Signals Technology Evaluation and Adaptation Group or the STEAG, an elite technology Unit, which will undertake research and evaluation of futuristic communication technologies like AI, 5G, 6G, machine learning, quantum technologies and etc., for defence applications: Indian Army officials.

Citing constitutional restrictions, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) has expressed reservations over whether members of the caretaker administration are eligible to run in the next Senate elections, Dawn reported.MNA Ali Mohammad Khan, who is supported by the PTI, claims that those who held posts in the temporary caretaker arrangement are prohibited by the constitution from running in elections that they supervised."Members of the caretaker Cabinets including the caretaker Prime Minister and the caretaker Chief Minister and their immediate family members shall not be eligible to contest the immediately following elections to such Assemblies," according to Dawn's citation of Article 224(1B) of the Constitution, which he used as support for his claim.

The Lok Sabha Elections 2024 Media Centre was opened in Ahmedabad on Monday by state president CR Paatil and Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel.

Sources familiar with the situation told Bloomberg News on Monday that Apple is in talks to include Google's Gemini artificial intelligence (AI) engine inside the iPhone. Furthermore, Apple has lately held discussions with Microsoft-backed OpenAI and has considered using its concept. Apple is preparing new features based on its in-house AI models for the next iPhone iOS 18. The study did point out that it is looking for a partner to enable generative AI features, like the ability to create images and write essays in response to simple cues.

Death toll in Metiabruz building collapse rises to 4. The search and rescue is under progress. Earlier Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee visited the site.

In a case involving a weapons licence, the Supreme Court granted bail to Abbas Ansari, the son of gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari.

Tamilisai Soundararajan, the governor of Telangana, submitted her resignation on Monday. Tamilisai, the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry, has tendered her resignation to President Droupadi Murmu.

The Enforcement Directorate summons, which was sent out in relation to a money laundering investigation involving the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), would not be attended by Arvind Kejriwal. In order to provide his statement in accordance with the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the Enforcement Directorate has requested that Arvind Kejriwal appear in person at its office on APJ Abdul Kalam Road on March 18.

Leader of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Satyendar Jain, was denied bail by the Supreme Court on Monday, March 18, in connection with a money laundering case. Jain was urged to surrender immediately, and the interim bail that had been granted to him was also revoked. According to the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, Jain was detained by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in May 2022 on suspicion of money laundering. He and several others were charged with money laundering through three different corporations in the years 2010–12 and 2015–16.

Returned to India for prosecution are the 35 Somalian pirates who turned themselves in to the Indian Navy following the freeing of the merchant vessel Ruen from their grasp.

On the basis of an ESIC complaint, Jayaprada was sentenced to six months in prison by a Metropolitan Magistrate Court in Chennai in August of last year. ₹37.68 lakh was said to be the outstanding amount. She appealed the trial court's ruling to the Madras High Court after the Magistrate found her guilty.

When SCBA President Adhish Aggarwala wrote to Chief Justice DY Chandrachud requesting a suo motu review of the Electoral Bonds ruling, the Chief Justice responded that these were all matters of publicity and that they would not discuss them further.

"You are president of SCBA in addition to being a senior counsel," CJI informed Aggarwala. You have used my suo motu powers in a letter that you have written. All of these are publicity-related, so we won't dig into it. Please don't force me to continue. It will be repulsive."

SBI was required to reveal details each electoral bonds received by political parties. The judgment indicates that SBI was required to submit all details in terms of purchase and in terms of receipt of contributions. There is no manner of doubt that SBI was required to make complete disclosure including alphanumeric and serial number if any of the bond purchased and redeemed.

The Supreme Court has denied a request to compel SBI to reveal details regarding electoral bonds that were bought and redeemed prior to April 12, 2019.

By the judgment of this court from Feb 15, this court had directed the disclosure of information on contributions received by political parties through electoral bonds to give complete effect to the judgment.

Supreme Court says it would ask SBI to reveal the Election Bond numbers and that it should file an affidavit claiming that it has not suppressed any information. According to SBI, the bank will divulge all of its knowledge and won't withhold any of it.

SG Tushar Mehta “There is a kind of witch hunting happening at some other level. Those before the court started giving press interview deliberately. There are a barrage of social media posts intended to cause embarrassment. Statistics can be twisted any manner a person wants.”

The Supreme Court says in the judgment, it had asked the SBI to disclose all details and that includes the Electoral Bond numbers as well.

CJI to SBI “What is the purpose of the alpha numeric? Is it a security feature. How does a redeeming branch match the electoral bond number to ensure it’s a forged bond.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to hold a roadshow in Coimbatore on Monday, following clearance from the Madras High Court. The roadshow will take place along Mettupalayam Road, with a probable conclusion at RS Puram. This event comes ahead of single-phase polling for Tamil Nadu's 39 Lok Sabha seats and Puducherry's lone segment, slated for April 19.

West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee reaches Metiabruz, South Kolkata where a 5-storey under-construction building collapsed. This is the first time after she has appeared publically after her injury.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address an election rally in Karnataka's Shivamogga on Monday, with this being his first rally in the southern state since the Election Commission of India (ECI), on Saturday, released the schedule for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

Mumbai Police submitted a closure report to the court in the alleged rape case involving JSW Group Chairman Sajjan Jindal, stating the lack of evidence found against him during the investigation.

Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin criticizes BJP, labeling electoral bonds as "white collar corruption." He emphasizes opposition unity under the INDIA bloc for a secular, federal, and inclusive government, highlighting the need to counter PM Modi's alleged foreign trips and fake propaganda.

Amidst uproar over Electoral Bonds data, BJP's RP Singh reveals that of the total ₹20,000 Cr, only ₹6,000 Cr went to BJP while the rest went to opposition parties. Singh emphasizes accountability for all, citing the Supreme Court's equal applicability.

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Executive Chairperson of Biocon Ltd, refutes claims of the company making political donations to JDS. She clarifies that any donations made were personal contributions, emphasizing transparency and legality in election funding.

Despite some parties receiving substantial donations, a vast majority didn't benefit from the now-defunct electoral bond scheme, as revealed by data submitted to the Supreme Court and disclosed by the Election Commission. For instance, Mayawati's BSP reported no funding via electoral bonds.

Former Chhattisgarh CM and Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel criticizes BJP, deeming the Electoral Bond Scheme as the "biggest scam of the year," alleging tactical moves against the opposition.

Congress leader Sachin Pilot responded to the Supreme Court's verdict on electoral bonds, urging accountability from the BJP. He demanded clarification on BJP's gains from the scheme and called for the seizure of their accounts, citing disparities in treatment by income tax authorities.

EC data reveals Future Gaming donated ₹509 Cr to DMK, comprising over 77% of its total electoral bond receipts. Most beneficiaries of Future Gaming's ₹859 Cr bonds remain undisclosed.

Newly released EC data shows BJP leading with ₹6,986.5 crore, followed by TMC, Congress, and BRS in electoral bond donations. On March 17, the Election Commission of India made public the digitized data it received from the Supreme Court registry regarding electoral bonds. This release marked the second set of data concerning electoral bond transactions, following an earlier disclosure on March 15, where the EC had obtained detailed information from the State Bank of India (SBI) as mandated by the Supreme Court.

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